RELEVANCE
RELATIONSHIPS
RECOGNITION
REWARDS

PANEL

The Simplified Supply Chain of the Future

As companies look to simplify their supply chains, we'll explore areas for packaging cost savings, reducing amount of packaging variety, develop more accurate forecasts vs product mix, and lower holding costs.

This is a unique opportunity for passionate, industry professionals to advance the thinking in this field. As a member, you'll engage with other panelists, learn more than you contribute, and get rewarded and recognized in the form of points and cash rewards. This engagement is moderated by an expert facilitator and is open asynchronously around-the-clock for your convenience over 4 days. You will also receive a $200 honorarium.

Each day of the 4 days, the facilitator will introduce a new subtopic exploring a new facet related to __TOPIC__.

Project Objectives:
- Better understand the needs of the market.
- Explore and map the current landscape.
- Identify future directions.
- Determine a recommended path.

This engagement is expected to launch early-April.

peopleExpert participation

- Former or Current Retailers/Buyers across Food, Drug, Mass, Club and eCommerce
- CPG Packaged Food Sales Executives
- General Managers
- Brand Managers (P&L)
- CPG or Retailer Supply Chain Directors
- Consultants with Highly Relevant Experience

Applicants
Michael Walsh
High-performance Sales Leader | Customer Advocate | Business Development | Innovation | Category Management | Retail
I bring senior sales experience from the FMCG & Pharmacy channels across multiple retails with a strong track record of success driving growth and profitability within highly competitive industries
Doug Cross
Consultant - Leadership, Sales, Category and Shopper Insights
25 years of experience in Snack Foods category with manufacturers and retailers working for ConAgra, Pinnacle Foods, and other companies.
Taylor West
Vice President of Marketing at Kodiak Cakes
I've worked in marketing/brand management for several years, managing several brands including several snack products. I'm intimately familiar with the process, trends, and considerations for consumer insights, innovation, business strategy, better-for-you snacking, product formulation, etc. I've also lived overseas.
Maria Leo
Merchandising/Product Development/Retail Strategist
As a merchant with expertise in buying, product development, sourcing and demand planning for department and specialty stores I am uniquely qualified to offer a valued prospective to the discussion. As a VP of Merchandising at Godiva I was challenged with merchandising, marketing and planning for 200 retail stores, wholesale accounts and direct to consumer business. I was challenged with staying current on the trends for the stores and developing ways to optimize these trends for wholesale accounts in order to offer differentiation and to provide CRM and speed to market innovations. I worked with Chefs and product development experts shopping the world for chocolate and snack trends. I attended trade shows and of course sampled it all! As a retailer by trade and a consumer by nature, I can offer perspective on the industry's past, the challenging current environment and tactical steps companies need in the competitive and growing specialty food commerce today
Lisa Ham
Category Manager - Center Store
As the center store category manager for an up and coming chain, Yesway, I believe I am well positioned to be up to date on the latest trends and competitive landscape. I'm constantly evaluating new products and evaluating market trends to ensure our planograms are up to date with what our customers are wanting. I'm also one of the target audiences - a millennial mom, who keeps up to date on the latest trends using not only market research, but also the latest social media trending items as well.
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lockThis panel is now closed to new applicants.

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Engage with equal-caliber peers any time you want.

star

Enhance your knowledge on this subject.

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Gain recognition as a thought-leader in your industry.

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Earn cashable rewards through points.

“I like that I can do this when I have time,
and there is no set schedule.”


Eric Allen, Senior Manager, Supply Chain at EY

“I find the topics engaging and I love the
flexibility of checking in and providing insights
at my convenience.”

Kimberly Underwood, Consultant at Underwood Consulting

“Great platform, great questions and topics.
The potential to earn a little more money for
participating is nice as well.”

Oren Birks, Sr. Director of IT at PBI-Gordon

“I really enjoy being on the panels, sharing
information and reading the perspective of the
other panelists. It is quite intriguing and most
all of the panelists are quite bright.”

Patty Soltis, CX Strategist at Kinetic Edge Consultants

“Very interactive, informative and without
any inherent bias. This is as good a collaborative
platform as you can get.”

Pinaki Banerjee, Program Director at ITC InfoTech

“It is a perfect platform not just to share
but to learn and stay updated.”


Armando Leyva, HR Director at 360º HC

FAQ
  • add remove What is Currnt?
    Currnt is a “Knowledge Networking” platform where companies and professionals come to stay relevant on the latest advances in their industries in the face of the increasing pace of change. Companies sponsor panels to learn about where markets are headed or how to leverage new capabilities. Professionals join to demonstrate and develop their passions with equal caliber peers in expert-only facilitated online engagements. On Currnt, we take our passions seriously and ourselves lightly. See our Community Guidelines, to learn more of the rules of the road, here are some highlights

    • Be yourself. The authenticity of Currnt begins with the passion of people.
    • Be respectful. This applies to every person, at all times.
    • Be inclusive. Tolerate, welcome, and consider diverse people and perspectives.
    • Build empathy and understanding. Engage in debates that are in good faith.
    • Foster meaningful and genuine connections. This is what Currnt is all about.
    • Do not plagiarize or fail to cite other’s ideas.
    • Don’t game the points by trying to coordinate intentional recognition.
  • add remove How do Panels work?
    The panel is like a facilitated forum of hand selected experts on a topic sponsored by a company that wants to learn fast. Panels are organized in chapters called Themes that focus on one subtopic at a time. In some panels Themes are only 24 hours in duration, in others they are a week long, and in some they are two weeks long. When one Theme closes, a new one begins. You come in when you feel like it, but try to come in twice per Theme. You earn points from your peers and the facilitator when they react to your ideas. Likewise, others earn points when you interact on their posts. The more we discuss and debate, the better the insights, the more points earned by all.

  • add remove Why should I apply? Do I get paid?
    Professionals join Currnt because they want to remain relevant on subjects they’re passionate about and subjects that are shaping the future of their industry. They also:

    • Engage and connect with equal caliber peers in their industry
    • Learn and enhance their knowledge
    • Get recognized and rewarded for providing their inputs and thought-leadership
    • When specified above in the project description, you can earn honorarium payments and/or recognition points redeemable for cash. Learn more here.
  • add remove Are there specific times I need to participate?
    There are no set times for calls or meetings. Participation is 100% online on the Currnt platform and engagement between the all expert panelists is asynchronous in written form. Just come in twice per Theme, at your convenience.

  • add remove How do KnowledgeStreams and DesignSprints work?
    Streams are ongoing online engagements for exploration or working iteratively with a panel, and Sprints are on-demand engagement to get to actionable insights quickly. Both are facilitated and are always-on for participants to engage at-convenience. The conversations are segmented into Themes which are subtopics which are like chapters in a book. In a 4 Day Sprint, Themes are 24 hours, whereas a Theme in a Stream is every two week. Throughout the discussion, the facilitator highlights and categorizes the “key takeaways” to be voted and distilled into a summary report. It’s also common that other pieces of content (whitepapers, blogs, podcasts) are also prepared from the distilled insights.

  • add remove I’ve applied. Now what?
    Your application will be internally reviewed in the following 24-48hrs and screened for any conflict of interest, and general fit. Next your application will be shortlisted for the sponsor to accept, bookmark or reject. You will receive a notification each step of the way, but expect this may take a couple of days, or even weeks if the panel is new. Nevertheless, in addition to the notifications, you can always go back to the Apply page to view the status of your application.

  • add remove I’ve been selected. What am I expected to do when selected?
    Once you receive your Welcome Email, please RSVP by clicking the link in the notification. You can also gain access to the panel through your ‘My Currnt’ at the top of the page. Finally, once you have RSVP’d by logging into the panel, there is often a Welcome Tab where you can introduce yourself to the other panelists. If it’s a new panel, the first Theme will launch in a few days, if it’s an ongoing panel just jump right in by reacting to the question or to what the other panelists had to say.

  • add remove If I have other questions or issues, what should I do?
    Please contact support to answer any other questions or troubleshoot any issues via email or chat.

The Simplified Supply Chain of the Future